First time in 6 years! MACROSS CORSSOVER LIVE 2019", a report on this special live performance that transcends time and space has arrived!

MACROSS CROSSOVER LIVE 2019 was held at Makuhari Messe on June 1 (Sat) and 2 (Sun), 2019.

MACROSS CROSSOVER LIVE 2019" was held at Makuhari Messe on June 1 (Sat) and 2 (Sun), 2019. Here is the official report from the event.

Official Report】 *Titles omitted

MACROSS CROSSOVER LIVE," which was held in 2009 and 2013, was held for the first time in six years. This time it was a 2-day event, and the performers were Mari Iijima (Lynn Minmei), Yoshiki Fukuyama (Hot Air Basara), Chieka Jiura (Milene F. Genus), May'n (Sheryl Nome), Ai Nakajima (Ranka Lee), the tactical music unit "Valkyrie" are Mikumo ΔJUNNA, Freya ΔSUKINORI, Kaname ΔKiyono Anno, Reina ΔNao Higashiyama, Machina ΔMochimi Nishida. A special live performance that transcended time and space was performed.

MACROSS CROSSOVER LIVE" was held for the first time in six years. A movie-like opening video played, and the names of the artists who would perform that day were projected on the screen. Mari Iijima and Yoshiki Fukuyama appeared on the main screen, and performed "Breathe, I'm feeling it", an anthem created by Mari Iijima at "MACROSS CROSSOVER LIVE" in 2009, with Iijima on keyboards and Fukuyama on acoustic guitar, in an acoustic version for this night only. Iijima played keyboard and Fukuyama played acoustic guitar. As the soft light of the stage signaled the beginning of the special time, a video of the first episode of "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross" played in the background. Mari Iijima appeared again and sang a medley of "My Man is a Pilot," "0-G Love," and "SUNSET BEACH" against a screen showing images of Lin Minmei and an illustration of Minmei drawn by character designer Haruhiko Mikimoto. All of these songs were written by Kentaro Haneda, and their pop appeal has stood the test of time. The joy of hearing these songs performed by a live band was of course great. And then she sang "Tenshi no E no Ou" (Angel's Paint), a song she wrote herself, saying, "You can see a really cute Minmay." A live scene of Minmay depicted in the OVA "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Flash Back 2012" played in the background, and it seemed to overlap with the actual image of Mari Iijima singing the song. She began by saying, "I always sing this song as if I were singing it for the first time," followed by the famous song "Ai oboete desu ka," which is one of the most popular songs in the series. The lyrics were written by Kazumi Yasui and composed by Kazuhiko Kato, both of whom are no longer with us. When Iijima sang this song, he said, "I feel like they are always there for me," and you could tell that he really cherished every word of the song. The video was also very powerful, showing the climax of the movie version on all five screens, and the chorus that broke out when she said, "Everybody sing!

The next band to appear was FIRE BOMBER, a rock band from "Macross 7. Center stage at the center of the venue...in the middle of a sea of bright red lights, Yoshiki Fukuyama, the singer of Hot Air Basara, sang "Suddenly Love Heart" passionately, and then slowly returned to the main stage from the flower aisle. During this time, he was just waiting for the beat to keep beating on the drums, just like the Bihita Feiz. Then they called in Chieka Jiura, who sang for Milene F. Genus, and together they sang "Virgin Story" with a call and response. The concept of the FIRE BOMBER stage was to showcase the colors of each soloist, with Fukuyama first singing the famous ballad "REMEMBER 16" with a video of Basara in the background, followed by Chieka Jiura singing "Virgin Story" with a video of Basara in the background, Then it was Chieka Jiura's turn. The sound of nature, as if in a forest, could be heard in the surround sound, changing the atmosphere of the venue, and then her fantastic voice could be heard. She delivered the world of each song well with a lineup of gentle melodies such as "LOVE SONG," "Kimi ni Todoke→" and "PILLOW DREAM. In a sense, it was a challenging stage, but the audience responded with loud applause. Then it was back to Fukuyama's solo. She sang "ANGEL VOICE" composed by Yoko Kanno under the name "Natsuki Basara," surrounded by the stars of the galaxy, and the final song "WOW WOW" had the audience singing along with her. After being intoxicated by the simple and good songs on stage, the audience went back to FIRE BOMBER. First, Chieka Jiura sang the main vocal "MY FRIENDS" at the center stage. Then, the two gathered on the main stage for the final MC, where they expressed their gratitude to the fans. Fukuyama said, "I treasure having met Hot Air Basara. The musician I respect the most is not The Beatles or Queen, but Hot Air Basara! He ended the performance with a rousing rendition of "PLANET DANCE.

While the afterglow of the "Macross 7" stage was still lingering, the singing miko (imulator) Ishtar was projected on the main screen. Special guest Hiroko Kasahara appeared on stage with the introduction of the song "Mou Ichido Love You. This is a famous song played in the climax of the final episode of "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross II -LOVERS AGAIN-". The screen showed the scene of the final battle, and her gentle and beautiful voice enveloped the audience. At the end of the performance, she said briefly, "I am very happy to have been allowed to perform. Thank you very much," she said shortly and left the stage.

After a 20-minute intermission during which nostalgic Macross-related commercials were shown, the second half of the show began with a clip from the beginning of the TV anime "Macross F" followed by "Welcome To My FanClub's Night! After May'n charmed the audience with her confident performance as Sheryl, she said, "Makuhari!　Listen to my song! and then they moved on to "Sagittarius☆9 p.m. Don't be late". The audience united with "Take it with you," and during the interlude, they ran as fast as they could to the center stage behind the stage, accompanied by the image of a Valkyrie flying through space!　The song was delivered powerfully.

Then, "Everybody, embrace me to the end of the galaxy! and another diva, Ranka Lee = Ai Nakajima appeared on stage. She performed "Interstellar Flight" along with a dance video of Ranka as a cute SD character and a live video of episode 12 "Fastest Delivery". The audience was intoxicated by the live performance of the super-time-space Cinderella. The audience was also intoxicated by the live performance of "What 'bout my star?@Formo," which reminded the audience of the street live performance at the shopping center in episode 5. It starts with Ai Nakajima's song, and May'n's voice can be heard from the center stage in the chorus. May'n and Ai Nakajima sang in excellent combination, stepping toward each other and looking at each other several times in the center of the aisle. They sang as they walked up to each other and looked at each other several times in the center of the aisle as they sang. Last year we released a single for the first time in a long time, but this is the first time we are performing it live," Nakajima said, and they performed a new song, "Good job! The audience was able to fully enjoy the wonderful chemistry between the two, which has not changed over the years.

Then the scene of Ranka's confession from "Macross Frontier the Movie: Sayonara no Tsubasa" played. From this point on, the flow was overwhelming. The sense of synchronization between the images and the songs is something that happens at live performances of individual works, but not so often at festivals like this. However, the duo's strong desire to "completely recreate the climax of the movie" made it possible. As they sang "Houkago Overflow" from "Confessions", their voices overflowing with emotion, they sang "Even if I die, the song will not die! After the song, Cheryl's line "Even if I die, the song will not die!" was interrupted by the powerful a cappella rendition of "Northern Cross," followed by "Daughters Final Attack Frontier Greatest Hits! and "Daughters Final Attack Frontier Greatest Hits! The final song was "Sayonara no Tsubasa - the end of triangle," which was played at the climax of the movie. The audience cheered loudly when the introduction was played, and above all, the power of the two singers' voices was so powerful that it shook the entire universe. The applause they received after the song was over was a testament to the excellence of their performance.

During the MC, May'n said, "This is the first time we are able to perform 'Sayonara no Tsubasa' with a live band, eight years after its release," and then said, "We will never sing this live, so good luck with the recording! May'n then happily shared an episode in which Yoko Kanno told May'n that she would never sing this live, so she had to work hard on the recording. After the two, who have been together since their teenage years, shared their feelings with each other, Ai Nakajima said, "I hope to have a solo live performance of 'Macross F' someday!　May'n responded with a smile, "You say that. That's my dream now!" May'n responded with a smile, "You're a bad girl. After such a bonding exchange, they closed the stage with a call and response to the last song, "Get it on - Kousoku Kosoku Kuraimax", uniting the audience as one.

The OP movie of the tactical music unit "Valkyrie" from "Macross Delta" was played without a pause. The silhouettes of the five members appeared with "Welcome to Walkure World! HARRATION THE WAR". The opening song brought back the excitement of the 3rd live performance at Yokohama Arena. The five singers showed off their wonderful harmony and coolness to the audience of "Macross" series fans. Valkyrie, the newest diva in the work, is the first vocal unit in the series, and its strength is probably that it is a live unit with five members harmonizing and dancing in formation. On this stage as well, I could not take my eyes off the movements of the five members.

After a friendly MC, they sang "Hitotsu Dake no Koi Nara" with the OP video of the anime, followed by the later OP theme "Sesshutsu Zero Degree θ Novatik". The five members then spread out on the long flower aisle to sing "Ruinous Pure Passion," in which JUNNA, the ace of the Valkyries, moved with her overwhelming singing ability!　When they reached the center stage, the title of the completely new movie version under production was announced as a surprise! The words "Macross Delta the Movie: Absolute LIVE !!!!!!" appeared on the screen. The words "Macross Delta the Movie: Absolute LIVE " appeared on the screen. !" mark on the screen, one of the members, who was caught up in the fact that there were six "! What does it mean? Director Kawamori answered in a loud voice, "You'll have to wait and see! The audience was excited to hear his answer. What the director felt from watching the Valkyries on stage will surely be reflected in the movie version.

The second half of the stage started with JUNNA's powerful solo, "Valkyrie will never betray you. The five members exploded their individuality while dancing on the center stage, and continued with "Valkyrie Stops Unstoppable," entertaining the audience with a free performance that only a live performance can provide. Mochimi Nishida and Junna hugged, Minori Suzuki sang while sitting on stage, and Kiyono Yasuno and Nao Higashiyama led the members. Seeing the five performers ad-libbing in this way reaffirmed the balance of their performances.

I am happy to be a part of Macross. I would like to pull "Macross Δ" and "Macross Δ" together so that Macross can continue for more than 100 years, so please support Valkyrie. Do you all love Macross?　Please put that feeling of love into action!　Are you ready?" and then the usual pretense to "When Lun glows with a flash". Here, Minori Suzuki showed her talent for stirring up the crowd. She sang while running back and forth along the flower aisle as fast as she could. At the end, everyone shouted "Gorigori-Attack! and everyone shouted "Gorigori-Attack!


But then, at the very end, special guest Maaya Sakamoto appeared on stage!　Her popularity and presence were as expected, and she excited the audience with a passionate rendition of "Triangler," the OP theme song of "Macross F." The live ended with a tremendous excitement.

For the encore, a crossover live performance transcending time and space was realized. Chiekaziura and Ai Nakashima sang "Aimo - Tori no hito," and the harmony of Chiekaziura's big, beautiful, all-embracing voice and Ai Nakashima's soothing voice that put one's heart at ease was wonderful. Then came "Nai nai borderline" by May'n and Valkyrie. After all, songs from "Macross Delta" are undeniably the most exciting songs to perform live. The audience was also enjoying the live performance with their voices raised, putting out the last of their energy.

Finally, it was time for the last song. Mika Doi (played by Mimisa Hayase) narrated the song and read out the names of the characters who appeared on stage that day in a touching performance. Then Mari Iijima appeared center stage. Today is the 13th anniversary of the death of Kentaro Haneda, who wrote wonderful songs for "Macross. All the performers today would like to deliver this song to Mr. Haneken in heaven with all our hearts. As all the performers of the day connected to sing the song, a live-action image of a photo album flipping through, reminiscent of the ending of the TV version, was shown on the screen. There, illustrations of each of the "Macross" series are pasted like photographs, and when the last page is turned, there is a picture of Kentaro Haneda's smiling face. ...... Time flies, but as long as the "Macross" series continues, the songs will be sung over and over again. Feeling the preciousness of the songs, "MACROSS CROSSOVER LIVE 2019," which generated a lot of emotion, came to a close.

Text by Junichi Tsukagoshi
Photos: Tsuyoshi Iwamoto (Chieka Jiura Photography), Yasuyuki Kimura, Daisuke Arakane (Other Artists Photography)

Setlist for Day 2

M1 I'm breathing, I'm feeling it
M2 Medley: My Man is a Pilot - 0-G Love - SUNSET BEACH
M3 Tenshi no E no Nogu
M4 Ai oboete desu ka

M5 Rushing Love Heart
M6 Virgin Story
M7 Remember 16

M8 LOVE SONG
M9 Kimi ni Todoke
M10 Pillow Dream

M11 Angel Voice
M12 My Friends
M13 Planet Dance

M14 Love You Again

～20 minutes break time

M15 Welcome To My Fanclub's Night!
M16 Sagittarius☆9:00 P.M. Don't be late
M17 Interstellar Flight
M18 What 'bout my star?
M19 good job!
M20 Houkago Overflow
M21 Daughters Final Attack Frontier Greatest Hits
M22 Sayonara no Tsubasa～the end of triangle
M23 Get it on～Kousoku Speed Climax

M24 Love! Halation THE WAR
M25 If it's only love once
M26 Absolute zero degree θ Novatic
M27 Junjo of Doom
M28 Valkyrie won't betray you
M29 Valkyrie Stopped
M30 When the runes shine

M31 Triangler

～Encore

M32 Imo
M33 Itaiai borderline
M34 Runner